Vanaraja Chavda

Vanaraja (IAST: Vanarāja Cāvaḍā) was the most prominent king of the Chavda dynasty who ruled Gujarat from c. 746 CE to c. 780 CE.

Kṛishṇabhaṭṭa’s (also known as Kṛṣṇakavi) Ratnamālā (c. 1230 CE) says that in 695/696 CE (Samvat 752) Jayaśekhara, the Cāvaḍā king of Pañcāsara, a village (in modern-day Patan district, Gujarat), was attacked by the Chaulukya king Bhūvaḍa of Kalyāna-kaṭaka in Kanyākubja (probably Kanauj) and slain by Bhūvaḍa in battle. Before his death Jayaśekhara, he sent his pregnant wife Rūpasundarī to the forest in charge of her brother Surapāla, one of his chief warriors who now turned to banditry. After Jayaśekhara’s death on the battlefield, Rūpasundarī gave birth to a son named Vanarāja. This tradition is of dubious validity, as there is no city called Kalyāna-kaṭaka near Kanauj, and the Cālukya capital of Kalyāṇa in the Deccan was only founded in the 11th century, about 250 years after the events are stated to have taken place. Additionally, there is no known king named Bhūvaḍa, although some scholars guess that it may refer to the Cālukya king Vijayāditya, who was also known as Bhuvanāśraya.

Merutuṇga, the author of the Prabandhachintāmaṇi, tells a story that Rupasundarī was living in Pañcāsara and had placed her infant son in a hammock on a tree, when a Śvetāmbara Jain monk named Śīlaguṇasūri who was passing by noticed that the tree's shade was not bending, which he believed was a sign of the boy's role to be a propagator of Jainism. The story adds that a nun named Vīramatī brought up the boy whom the monks called Vanarája, literally "the forest king". When eight years old, the monk told Vanarāja to protect his place of worship from rats. The boy’s skill in shooting rats and his horoscope convinced the monk he was not fit to be a monk but was worthy of a kingdom. He therefore returned the boy to his mother. These details seem invented by the Jain writers themselves. No mention of any such story occurs in the Ratnamálá.

In the Purātana-prabandha-saṅgraha, in Ambāsana village, two Cāpotkaṭa brothers, Canda and Cāmuṇḍa, are foretold by an astrologer that Cāmuṇḍa's unborn son would kill Canda. Cāmuṇḍa's unnamed wife is cast out and she moves to Pañcāsara, where she gives birth to Vanarāja and places him in a hammock on a tree, when Śīlaguṇasūri who was passing by noticed that the tree's shade was not bending, and then proceeds to take them both to live in a temple.

According to the Dharmāraṇya-māḥātmya, Gujarat was conquered by Āma, king of Kanauj, who then gave it away as dowry to his son-in-law Dhruvapaṭa of Valabhi. Due to this, the Brāhmanas fled to Jayaśekhara of Pañcāsara. Dhruvapaṭa thus invited Āma to attack Jayaśekhara, who then dies on the battlefield. His wife, Akṣaṭa, is given refuge in a forest by Brāhmanas, who then foresees a royal future for her son.

In the forests where Vanarája passed his youth lived his maternal uncle Surapála, one of Jayaśekhara’s generals, who, after his sovereign’s defeat and death, had become an outlaw. Vanarája grew up under Surapála’s charge. The Prabandhachintámaṇi records the following story of the origin of Vanarája’s wealth. A Kanyákubja king married Maháṇaká, the daughter of a Gujarát king. To receive the proceeds of the marriage cess which the Gujarát king had levied from his subjects, a deputation or panchkúla came from Kanyákubja to Gujarát. The deputation made Vanarája their leader or sellabhrit to realize the proceeds of the cess. In six months Vanarája collected 24 lákhs of Páruttha drammas and 4000 horse, which the deputation took and started for Kanyákubja. Vanarája waylaid and killed them, secured the money and horses, and remained in hiding for a year. With the wealth thus acquired Vanarája enrolled an army and established his power assuming the title of king.

Aṇahilaváḍa (or Aṇahilapura, now Patan, Gujarat) was founded in 746 or 765 CE. The story of the choice of the site is the usual story of a hunted hare turning on the hounds showing the place to be the special nurse of strength and courage. Vanarája is said to have asked a Bharváḍ or Shepherd named Aṇahila son of Śákhadá to show him the best site. Aṇahila agreed on condition that the city should be called by his name. Aṇahila accordingly showed Vanarája the place where a hare had attacked and chased a dog. The city may have been called after some local chief since it was popularly known as Aṇahilaváḍa (Sanskrit:Aṇahilaváta) that is "the place of Aṇahila".

In the Prabandhachintámaṇi, Merutuṇga gives 746 CE (S. 802) as the date of the accession of Vanarája, while in his Vicháraśreṇi the same author gives 765 CE (S. 821 Vaisakha Śukla 2) as the date of the foundation of the city. The discrepancy may be explained by taking 746 CE (S. 802) to refer to the date of Vanarája’s getting money enough to fix the site of his capital, and 765 CE (S. 821) to refer to the date of his accession in the completed Aṇahilaváḍa. According to local tradition, an image of Ganpati in the city also have an inscription dated S. 802 but it seems late installation.